Filmmaker Hali Lee thought her own prom was a real letdown, yet she continued to be fascinated by the endurance of this quintessentially American coming-of-age ritual. To discover why, she returns to her hometown of Kansas... more &raquo City to track the pomp, preparations and individual stories of would be promgoers as diverse as America itself. Among them: Smurf, an inner-city track star who is gunning for Prom King; Nick, who attends a No-Dancing-or-Spaghetti-Straps celebration of an ultra-conservative Christian school; Gayla, an openly lesbian teen who participates in an alternative event by a gay & lesbian youth group; and Oliver, an anti-prom slacker who takes his video camera as his date. With wry humor and an analytical eye, Lee and co-director Peter von Ziegesar breezily capture the fabricated fantasies, kitsch and pageantry that keep proms eternal.

Movie Reviews

A Perfect Film For Family Viewing

Holly Gewandter | NY, NY USA | 09/03/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"We all loved "Prom Night", particularly our 13 year-old daughter. It raised all sorts of questions that were great discussion-starters about conformity, cultural expectations and the pressure that goes along with them, and growing up."

Funny, Insightful Documentary

L. Oshva | New York, NY | 07/27/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well filmed, brilliant editing, fascinating view into the lives of modern day teenage life in the midwest. LOVED this movie."